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Taxpayer Supports for Biomass in Federal Farm Bill

August 28, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture , Energy

Taxpayer Supports for Biomass in Federal Farm Bill For years, proponents of bioenergy and biofuels promised that the industry would help reduce U.S. dependence on fossil fuels, decrease... Read More

Current Agricultural Policy’s Effects on Water Quality

August 21, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Current Agricultural Policy’s Effects on Water Quality For more than 75 years, market-distorting agricultural subsidies have produced numerous unintended consequences that have degraded water... Read More

Federal Subsidies for the United States Enrichment Corporation

July 08, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Federal Subsidies for the United States Enrichment Corporation The United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) was established in 1992 as a wholly-owned federal entity until it was privatized in 1998.... Read More

DOE Loan Guarantee Program: Vogtle Reactors 3&4

July 02, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

DOE Loan Guarantee Program: Vogtle Reactors 3&4 In February 2010, the Department of Energy (DOE) conditionally offered Southern Company and its partners a total of $8.33 billion in... Read More

Impact of Ag Subsidies and Record Farm Profits in Farm Country

June 18, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Impact of Ag Subsidies and Record Farm Profits in Farm Country Despite last year’s drought, the agriculture sector recorded its second highest year of profits in a generation, down just three percent... Read More

Achieving Measurable Outcomes in Agricultural Conservation Programs

June 14, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Achieving Measurable Outcomes in Agricultural Conservation Programs All federal agricultural programs – including conservation programs - should prove that they are achieving measurable outcomes that... Read More

Corporate Consolidation in Agriculture Fact Sheet

June 13, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Corporate Consolidation in Agriculture Fact Sheet Despite best intentions, sometimes federal programs do more harm than good and cause unintended consequences that unnecessarily shift... Read More

Income Guarantee for Agribusinesses: Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) Shallow Loss Program

June 10, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Income Guarantee for Agribusinesses: Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) Shallow Loss Program “Shallow loss” programs are a luxury that would be the envy of any other industry. They are market- and trade-distorting entitlement... Read More

Reforming the Farm Safety Net: Principles for Accountability

May 23, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Reforming the Farm Safety Net: Principles for Accountability Every five or so years, Congress has an opportunity to reform agriculture policy in the farm bill, a massive piece of legislation that... Read More

Biomass Crop Assistance Program Fact Sheet

May 02, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture , Energy

Biomass Crop Assistance Program Fact Sheet The Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP), a new program added to the energy title in the 2008 farm bill, was intended to spur... Read More

Biorefinery Assistance Program Fact Sheet

April 30, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture , Energy

Biorefinery Assistance Program Fact Sheet The Biorefinery Assistance Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Development office, was intended to... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: Biofuels and Biomass

April 30, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture , Energy

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: Biofuels and Biomass Created as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program has $34 billion in... Read More

Biomass Research and Development Initiative Fact Sheet

March 26, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture , Energy

Biomass Research and Development Initiative Fact Sheet The Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) provides grants to companies, universities, and government research centers to... Read More

Oil Shale: Failing Taxpayers for Decades

December 19, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Energy , Natural Resources

Oil Shale: Failing Taxpayers for Decades Since the early 20th century, the federal government and private industry have attempted to commercialize oil shale but after years of... Read More

Golden Fleece Awarded to Risk Management Agency for Risking Taxpayer Dollars

December 13, 2012 | Awards | Agriculture

Golden Fleece Awarded to Risk Management Agency for Risking Taxpayer Dollars Taxpayers for Common Sense awarded the Golden Fleece to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency for wasting taxpayer funds on risk management education for crops ranging from Christmas trees to turf grass.... Read More

Subsidizing Oil Shale: Tracing Federal Support for Oil Shale Development in the United States

November 29, 2012 | Reports & Data | Energy , Natural Resources

Subsidizing Oil Shale: Tracing Federal Support for Oil Shale Development in the United States With fiscal cliff looming, TCS calls for end to government handouts for failed oil shale experiments.... Read More

Loan Guarantee Program 101

October 16, 2012 | 101 | Agriculture , Budget & Tax , Energy , Natural Resources

Loan Guarantee Program 101 A basic primer on the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program and answers general questions on the history, administration, and overall effect of the program.... Read More

Farm Bill 101

October 02, 2012 | 101 | Agriculture , Budget & Tax

Farm Bill 101 The Farm Bill is a massive piece of legislation that guides food and farm policy. It covers wide-ranging topics from rural broadband service to farm subsidy payments.... Read More

Agricultural Safety Net 101

October 02, 2012 | 101 | Agriculture

Agricultural Safety Net 101 The agricultural safety net refers to the various federal programs and policies that insulate agricultural producers from the costs of conducting business.... Read More

Analysis of FY13 Continuing Resolution: Special Carve-outs

September 10, 2012 | Policy Brief | Energy , National Security

Analysis of FY13 Continuing Resolution: Special Carve-outs H.J. Res. 117 — Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2013 was released this morning (9/11/2012). TCS staff will be posting relevant documents and analysis as we digest this proposal over the coming days.... Read More

Record Drought Results in Record Profit

August 30, 2012 | Agriculture

Special interests are always looking for a silver lining. This year, it’s the farm lobby and sympathetic politicians shamelessly taking... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: $8 Billion Allocated for Fossil Fuel Projects

August 02, 2012 > Updated: August 29, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

While the program was intended for emerging energy technologies, mature industries like coal and nuclear are eligible as well. Congress provided the program with funding in several areas including advanced nuclear reactors, renewable and energy efficiency, front-end nuclear fuel cycle technology, and advanced fossil fuels.... Read More

With Agriculture Disaster Aid Congress Pays Now, Hopes to Save Later

August 01, 2012 | Policy Brief | Agriculture

With Agriculture Disaster Aid Congress Pays Now, Hopes to Save Later Citing record drought conditions throughout the country, the House is debating today legislation to retroactively extend four... Read More

Taxpayers Lose with More Unnecessary Farm Subsidy Layers

July 26, 2012 | Policy Brief | Agriculture

Taxpayers Lose with More  Unnecessary Farm Subsidy Layers Federal farm programs are ripe for reform, especially those that lock in record high prices and guarantee farmers’ expected income. As... Read More

Federal-Free Risk Management in Agriculture

June 18, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Federal-Free Risk Management in Agriculture Like all businesses, agricultural producers face a number of risks in maintaining a profitable enterprise. Successful management of these... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: Uranium Enrichment

May 15, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: Uranium Enrichment The Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program was created in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide Treasury backed loan... Read More

Government Report Reinforces Need to Harvest Savings in Crop Insurance

April 11, 2012 | Agriculture

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released a report detailing the potential to save more than a billion dollars a year... Read More

Crop Insurance: A Federal Cash Assurance Program

February 09, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Agriculture

Federal crop insurance is a highly taxpayer subsidized program that allows agricultural producers to shift their business risk onto... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantees: Renewable and Energy Efficiency

December 05, 2011 > Updated: August 29, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

The Department of Energy loan guarantee program that backed Solyndra, a solar panel manufacturer which went bankrupt on August 31, 2011... Read More

Taxpayer-Backed Loan Guarantees for Liquid Coal: Medicine Bow, Wyoming

December 01, 2011 > Updated: September 13, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Taxpayer-Backed Loan Guarantees for Liquid Coal: Medicine Bow, Wyoming The Medicine Bow plant has been repeatedly delayed over eight years. Putting the full faith and credit of the U.S. government behind this costly and risky project is fiscally reckless. ... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program: Uranium Enrichment

October 23, 2011 | Fact Sheet | Energy

The Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program was created in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide Treasury backed loan... Read More

Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program: Status Update on Proposed, Pending, and Final Applicants

October 04, 2011 > Updated: August 29, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program currently has $34.8... Read More

Super Cuts for the Super Committee

Taxpayers for Common Sense has been working hard to meet the challenge of that the so-called Super Committee is facing - $1.2-1.5... Read More

Comparison of Essential Air Service Program to Alternative Coach Bus Service

September 12, 2011 | Reports & Data | Transportation & Infrastructure

Report Highlights Significant Savings in Essential Air Service Program... Read More

Comparing Proposals for a National Infrastructure Bank

September 07, 2011 | Reports & Data | Transportation & Infrastructure

With extension of the nation's surface transportation program currently being debated in the halls of Congress, policymakers are... Read More

Essentially Wasteful: The Essential Air Service

August 03, 2011 | Fact Sheet | Transportation & Infrastructure

Congress has split town leaving an important deal unfinished. Yes, the debt ceiling got raised, but there’s another important piece of... Read More

Taxpayer Risks with the Loan Guarantee Program

April 07, 2011 > Updated: August 28, 2012 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Taxpayer Risks with the Loan Guarantee Program The Department of Energy (DOE) loan guarantee program carries extremely high taxpayer risk, potentially jeopardizing billions of taxpayer dollars if energy project loans default.... Read More

Ongoing TCS Analysis of the FY2012 Budget Proposal

March 10, 2011 | Policy Brief |

The FY2012 Presidential Budget Request was released this morning. TCS staff will be posting relevant documents and analysis as we digest... Read More

Common Sense Cuts—$900 billion in savings over 10 years

The time has come for Congress to begin a serious discussion about how it is going to correct the current budgetary path into deeper and... Read More

TCS Recommended Budget Cuts for the 112th Congress

The time has come for Congress to begin a serious discussion about how it is going to correct the current budgetary path into deeper and... Read More

Green Scissors 2010

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined a number of environmental and consumer groups and a bipartisan slate of Representatives today in... Read More

New Report Finds DOE Loan Guarantee Program Riddled with Problems

July 11, 2010 | Fact Sheet | Energy

 The Government Accountability Office released a new report today, finding that the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program... Read More

Federal Loan Guarantees for Nuclear Reactors: Details of the Current Applicants

June 21, 2010 | Fact Sheet | Energy

On February 16, 2010, the Department of Energy offered the first conditional nuclear loan guarantee of $8.3 billion to Southern Company... Read More

DOE Loan Guarantees: Overview, Risks, and More

March 18, 2010 > Updated: August 30, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

DOE Loan Guarantees: Overview, Risks, and More Created in Title 17 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act, the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program has received increased scrutiny with the default of a loan guarantee to the solar start-up company, Solyndra.... Read More

Obama to Contractors: Don’t Cheat Uncle Sam

January 22, 2010 | Policy Brief | National Security

It was payback time for President Obama this week when he threw down the gauntlet to tax-dodging contractors.Taxpayers pay contractors... Read More

Senate Version of The Clean Energy Deployment Administration (CEDA)

December 10, 2009 | Policy Brief | Energy

Both the House and Senate have proposed the creation of the new federal financing entity known as the Clean Energy Deployment... Read More

Congressional Budget Office Analysis Confirms Senate CEDA Jeopardizes Billions of Taxpayer Dollars

December 10, 2009 | Policy Brief | Energy

The American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009 (ACELA), S. 1462, as approved by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in... Read More

Department of Energy: Loan Guarantee Program Overview

June 09, 2009 > Updated: August 30, 2013 | Fact Sheet | Energy

Department of Energy: Loan Guarantee Program Overview Created in Title 17 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act, the Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program has received increased scrutiny with the default of a loan guarantee to the solar start-up company, Solyndra.... Read More

Risky Business on Wall Street

September 16, 2008 | Policy Brief | Budget & Tax

This morning the federal government (which means you the American taxpayer) became the not-so-proud owner of American International Group... Read More

Banking on the Future

July 31, 2005 | Reports & Data | Natural Resources , Transportation & Infrastructure

Investing in Smart Water Strategies for Pennsylvania and the Nation... Read More

Let’s End the Century of Subsidies

June 16, 2002 | Natural Resources

The following statement was released today by Steve Ellis, Senior Director of Water Resources at Taxpayers for Common Sense on the 100th anniversary of the United States Bureau of Reclamation:... Read More

Energy Polluter Poised to Reap $62 Billion in Taxpayer Handouts

January 31, 2002 | Reports & Data | Agriculture , Energy , Natural Resources

WASHINGTON, DC - Government subsidies to oil, coal and nuclear power industries could double if the Senate passes the House energy bill... Read More

From the Ashes

December 31, 2000 | Reports & Data | Natural Resources

Reducing the Harmful Effects and Rising Costs of Western Wildfires... Read More

Weekly Wastebasket

Our weekly reality-check for federal spending. View All

September 13, 2013

Syria: Excuse 535 To Not Cut the Deficit

Volume XVIII No. 37 Possible action in Syria has become the most recent excuse du jour for Pentagon boosters... Read More